Discussion Thread - Tasks of a Pastor
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PROMPT: What are the top 5 tasks of a pastor, and why? Tasks of a Pastor
This is quite possibly my favorite discussion prompt that I have ever had in a class. Why?
Because it is getting down to the actual business of what ministry should look like in light of God’s Word. That said, I have struggled greatly to “limit” myself to five absolutely essential tasks that a pastor must do. It is my belief that there are a number of other things that one could quite biblically include in this list, but I believe that if any pastor is not doing these five things in particular, that they are not actually fulfilling the role of a pastor/shepherd/overseer from Scripture. Additionally, I struggled with how to order these five items, ultimately landing on putting them in order of process as I see it, that you cannot have the next without the prior, although there are arguments that could be made to swap some of them around. First on my list of tasks for a pastor to accomplish is one that I would include multiple times if I could, possibly just in between every other item on this list, and that is the task of prayer, with worship being part of prayer. The second we begin to believe that we are the ones accomplishing the work of ministry, rather than God working through us, we have already failed.
Prayer calls us as leaders back to a dependence on the Lord and an awareness of his direction for our lives and ministries. In 1 Timothy 2:1, Paul writes “First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people,” (English Standard Version) emphasizing the absolute necessity of prayer.
Second only to prayer in the role of a pastor is the task of studying and teaching the Word
of God. Quite possibly the most emphasized task in Scripture for a pastor/elder specifically to
fulfill, preaching God’s Word is a responsibility not to be taken lightly. In James 3:1 we even see
a warning about this, “Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness.” The third task I have identified for a pastor is only third because it is significantly dependent on a pastor’s prayer and worship life and study of God’s Word, and that is to be a humble example to the church of what a follower of Jesus should look like. Pastors should in no way be expected to be perfect, no human being is, but to be a humble example of what someone genuinely desiring to follow Jesus looks like is incredibly
important. We see this in Peter’s charge to elders/pastors in 1 Peter 5:2-3, “shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly; not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock.” The fourth and fifth tasks on my list on not necessarily less important, but I believe that they flow out of the first three, and that is to equip and disciple others, and counsel and console the church. In Ephesians 4:11-12, we see that the purpose of shepherds and teachers is to not just do all the work of ministry, but to equip other believers for it! Any leader that tries to do it all will greatly limit themselves in what they can accomplish. Truly successful leaders duplicate themselves and build teams to work together. In this same outward attitude, pastors are to care for the flock that has been given to them, as we see in Acts 20:28, helping people through the pains and difficulties of this life. As I said before, this is not an exhaustive list. For example, John MacArthur includes exposing and refuting lies, working hard for the ministry, and suffering well for the sake of
Christ in a very similar list.
1
All things that God calls us to do! However, I believe that these five
tasks that I have listed are at the core of what pastors are called to do. 1
John F. MacArthur Jr., Pastoral Ministry: How To Shepherd Biblically
(Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers,
2005), 26.
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Replies (2x200+): Hey E. Shaun! I just have to say that I absolutely loved reading your post. Although we may have called a couple of our “tasks” different things and pulled from some different Scriptures, it seems to me that we came up with almost the exact same list! I particularly loved how one of your main tasks that you put down for a pastor to do was serving. I may have called this being a humble example,
but serving others is really the best possible way that you can be a humble example of what a follower of Christ should look like. I also appreciated how you pulled from Ephesians 4:11-12 for the task of leading others. Building out beyond oneself is most certainly a core responsibility of any effective leader, especially a pastor. I believe that we see that this was one of the main things that Jesus did by the way that he led and equipped his disciples to go out into the world as his ambassadors, even after he had departed physically. Lastly, I agree with you wholeheartedly that prayer is one of, if not the most, important tasks that a pastor can accomplish. We must be repeatedly going back to the Lord with everything that he has given us and called us to. Great post! -
Andy -------------------------
Hey William, You did a great job of both pulling from our academic text for the week and citing relevant Scriptures to back your claims. While I fully agreed with each and every one of these different tasks, and agree that they are major responsibilities and roles for a pastor to attend to, I felt MacAuthur failed in not directly including prayer as a core responsibility of a pastor. I do
recognize that prayer can fit in as a part of many other tasks, and indeed I think it should, but I also believe it deserves its own core focus and attention in the life of any believer, and much more so in the life of a spiritual leader. My primary concern is that when we focus too much on the physical tasks of ministry, and in any way shy away from an ongoing connectivity with and submission to the Lord, we eventually begin to depend on ourselves, rather than God. Avoiding this pitfall should be front and center for anyone that is desiring to lead God’s church well. Similarly, I have been encouraged more and more lately that we as pastors and leaders ought to be passionately engaged in the act of worship on a regular basis, both through prayer and other forms of praise. This continually reminds us of the joy and privilege that it is to be in relationship
with the almighty God who loves us. Great post! -
Andy
Bibliography
MacArthur Jr., John F. Pastoral Ministry: How To Shepherd Biblically
. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 2005.
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